Family History News and Views from Lisa Louise Cooke, host of The Genealogy Gems Podcast at www.GenealogyGems.com

Tuesday, May 13, 2008

What Do You Do When Family Isn't Family?

Back in September of 1984 I was a newly wed just back from my honeymoon. So that may explain why I don't remember catching the episode of the popular "Who's the Boss" TV show called "I Dream of Genealogy." If you missed it too, no worries, because now you can free on NBC Universal's website called Hulu.com.

When I found this episode, I thought I would just catch a couple of minutes, but ended up watching the entire thing. (TV was pretty cute back in the eighties!) In this genealogically themed episode, Tony's daughter Samantha (played by Alyssa Milano) is prompted by a schoolwork assignment about family history to write a letter to the mayor of a village in Italy in hopes of making contact with Tony's maternal grandfather. Tony is delighted to meet his maternal grandfather for the very first time when he comes to visit, but is shocked to discover that his house guest may not be a member of the "famiglia" after all.

It's a charming episode, and reminds us that half the joy of genealogy is the wonderful people we meet along the way, even if they don't share our DNA.